Charlie Wayman

Well, it was pretty plain to see last night that even without all the disruption of injuries, a near full strength Saints team just isn't good enough to compete in the top half of this league no matter how much we would like them to. Leeds contained us easily in the first half and in the second they were clever enough to exploit our weaknesses and pick us off at will as we tired and lost our pace and recovery. Why Ralph didn't start Danny Ings must go down as one of his poorest decisions. When we were at our most effective he wasn't there to exploit the opportunities created. When he did come on we had become largely ineffective at creating chances so he was left to forage. What is he saving Ings for at this stage of the season? Baffling. Whilst I admire Ralph's touchline enthusiasm, did it really help players to have him bellow instructions at them every time they got near the ball... "go, go go Redders!" - when the lad was miles away from the ball and ... "the other way!" - as Tella received a cross field ball in the middle of the pitch. Does it really help? Do the coaching at Staplewood Ralph and trust the players on the pitch, is my advice. In short "Shut it!" Ralph My goodness we are desperately in need of a shot or two in the arm in this summer's transfer window.

You've been around long enough to know that our players are only allowed one poor game before the abuse kicks in. Diallo is the latest target. There is no way back for Redmond. Only Forster has managed to retrieve some measure of respect but he had to leave for a couple of years to do so.

He just doesn't seem to possess a grain of self awareness. Best to ignore him and not respond

Are you for real? Behave like that and another lockdown is almost guaranteed. For starters singing is not allowed and you will be required to wear a mask. Try to act responsibly and who knows the number of new cases of Covid will not rise dramatically and you will get another chance to watch Saints in action soon

Really should compare like with like, it was the Fulham lads second PL outing whereas Tella has featured quite a few times this season.

A reasonably solid display against a poor Fulham side but we were still stretched too easily in defence and better sides would have punished us more severely for our errors. Salisu acquitted himself well but we need to sort out his best position to get the best from him. It seems Ralph is trying to turn him into a left back to compensate for the loss of Bertrand and so as not to have to choose which two of three equally meritorious CBs to play in the middle and which one to leave out. With KWP bombing forward and Salisu more or less anchored at RB, we looked very lopsided and it showed with Redmond more or less isolated on the left wing and getting little service from the fullback or the MF. People will criticise him for his poor attacking performance today but it's a team game and if he doesn't get the ball played into him what is he supposed to do? There were several occasions when the obvious out-ball was to Redmond standing in clear space but the ball went the other way across a crowded midfield and invariably the moves broke down. Some very poor game reading here by the MFs and CBs. Nice little cameo from Tella with a well taken tap in and an equally delicious flick for Walcott to finish with aplomb. Nice to see some clinical finishing for a change. HIs instinctive reaction finish in a crowded box capped another committed display from Adams. Not sure about MotM but it was one of those days where nobody shone but everyone played their part. Leeds will be a tougher test.

Oh, Yes he did!

Ralph Hasenhüttl seemed very downbeat about transfer possibilities this summer during his press conference, what do you think he knows that we don't? He has talked a lot about getting players in early but maybe he has already been rebuffed by players or agents or the money just isn't there. I was saddened that he didn't seem to have good word to say for Bertie when asked about how that would impact on the team. "We can find a better replacement" seems to have been the knub of his comment. Noticeable too that Bertie didn't mention Ralph on his Twitter account when praising fans and management the other day. Read into this coolness on both sides what you will. Suddenly there is a sinking feeling that this summer's transfer business will not amount to the root and branch clear-out and rebuild that has been hinted at by RH in his more upbeat moments.

The New Forest is full of Pony's right now

Many fans will be genuinely sad that Ryan is leaving in the summer. He found his home here and will leave with a huge amount of respect and love. He will be sadly missed. He deserves to be remembered as a true Saint and receive a hearty welcome whenever he chooses to return as a fan or follower as he implies on his Twitter account. It is always sad when the career of a loyal servant such as Ryan inevitably winds down but it is probably right that he has quit now rather than let the years' take their toll. In Ralph's high energy, gut-busting playbook that might have been sooner rather than later. He has a year or two left in his legs in a less demanding environment and deserves a final big pay day. Who knows, with his ambitions in club management we might well see him back soon as a coach. He has a lot of experience tp pass on. Good luck Ryan and Thank You.

I meant for this match.

Your disdain for the player is qobvious from other ill-considered comments from you on other threads. Pity you let your prejudice get in the way of sensible analysis of the situation. Decisions have to be made by Ralph with regard to contracts for Walcott and Minamino for next season; he can only make those decisions if he gives the players a decent run in the team to assess their form. Of course results matter in terms of club earnings but from now on in it is about personnel, who stays, who goes? He has seen plenty of Theo but less of Minamino so logically if the player is on offer from Liverpool then Ralph needs all the information he can get to make that decision and he can do that only if he sees the lad in action on the field. Expect him to play in a pretty much unchanged side. The conundrum is Salisu who deserves to start. I'd choose him over Stephens, he is much better player. Bednarek was subbed last night because of a knock and a pre-interval yellow card not because of any concerns over his form or contribution.

A very entertaining match in which the best and the worst of today's Saints was on offer. All of the players acquitted themselves reasonably well, OK nearly everyone made a mistake or two but what was good to see was the team battling for every ball right to the end. Ings gets MotM over Forster simply because he is a striker and goals are more impressive and memorable than stops. Both of Danny's goals were amazing in their delicacy and precision (Note: Adams, you don't have to blindly leather it every time) whilst Fraser's penalty save was absolutely top drawer. Where are his critics now? Still there's plenty of time left this season for them to come out of the woodwork and have another go at him. Now it seems it's Minamino's turn for the mindless boo boys to turn on. Contrary to what a few of them have said on this thread, he played really well last night linking up with the MFs to create chances for the strikers. Give him more game time and we've got the makings of a very fine and intelligent player. Better late than never comes to mind this morning.

Are you serious? He looks and acts like a lumbering Ox. Has no sense of reading the game or how to involve himself and stands around like a spare whatknot at a wedding most of the time. Adams is twice the player and he has hardly set the stage alight.

I cannot believe that any of you are scrambling for tickets to watch the dross on offer at SMS these days. Must be that you've been locked up for too long.

Here we go with the first of four totally irrelevant matches to end a shameful season. Who cares about the outcome as we battle heroically for 16th position in the table. Staying up courtesy of the ineptitude of three other teams gives no satisfaction at all. It's pretty clear by now that whichever XI players take the field tonight we will serve up the usual dross and lose, Ralph will make his usual excuses, the "learning points" (JWP!) will be ignored as usual and we ill be back here tomorrow moaning about all and sundry. Thank goodness for a Motor Club Zoom meeting this evening which promises to be significantly less boring than watching Redmond & Co piss about with the same objectivity as a Manx cat chasing its tail.

An excellent post that encapsulates precisely what many must be thinking. Relegation next season seems almost inevitable on our current pathway.

For Heaven's sake get rid of this man!

Having watched the Man C v Chelsea match just before ours, the gulf in class was a stark reminder of just how poor we have become. Yet again we ran around frantically like decapitated chickens in a hurry to go nowhere. Our front line with the embarrassing exception of Tella would struggle to create anything worthwhile in the Championship let alone in this league. True to form they created precisely the square root of BA last night. They were so poor that our defence and midfield had to resort to passing sideways and backwards just to keep the ball for a while to relieve the pressure on themselves. They knew full well that any ball into a forward would be lost and the Scousers would be back on them again immediately. The less said about Theo's performance the better. Has he changed his mind about ending his career here? More showings like this and management will be coming to the same conclusion. As for Adams & Redmond... (expletives deleted). So if we end up at 17th, where does that leave us next season? The odd newcomer this summer is hardly going to produce the root and branch overhaul of this squad that is so sorely needed. The lack of success of any of our teams A, B or U18 surely must be creating such a toxically negative culture around Staplewood that one is beginning to wonder if we will ever win another match certainly under this set-up. How many players will just want out to get away from it all this summer? Those that can probably will. It is a mystery to me that a manager with such little success on the field still enjoys almost deity status off it. Time to clip his wings, he has too much power in the club.

If Ryan Bertrand is allowed to slip away it will be one of the worst decisions this club has ever made in the transfer market. Much emphasis is put on establishing a club 'culture' and Ryan epitomises all that is good about players that fit our ideas of 'culture'. Like JWP and I suspect Stuart Armstrong intelligence, club loyalty and decency are the outstanding hallmarks of his character. His influence on the team and its culture surely go way beyond his performances on the pitch. For the sake of a few quid or months on his contract we will be mad to let him go. We have no adequate back-up and the cost of replacing him probably will massively outweigh any savings made by being hard-nosed in negotiations. It is well known that he has ambitions beyond playing so surely we can do deal on the basis of him having a player / coach role here as his playing days wind down. Heaven knows some of the coaches that we employ currently as 'coaches' have far less to offer than a player as experienced as Bertie as results would tend to confirm. If he goes I will be out in Britannia Road with my "Sack the Board!" placard

There are far more pressing matters to worry about this summer.

...and to be fair that is only fair. Many companies will have invested millions in the event in sponsorships and advertising and will need the Turkish & European advertising exposure to recover their money.

I suppose it is a tacit acknowledgement that he regards them both as pretty useless. If he had a clear first choice he would use it.

Obviously Ralph has the option of fielding eleven players at Anfield but he might prefer to select only ten after last week's excellent display. Never change a "winning" team.............

100% agree with you.